Published: October 06, 2008 10:12 pm      

MEPS getting nominations for center room name

Ribbons as colorful as a bowl of salad and medals awarded by a grateful nation tell much about a veteran.

On the other hand, the letters sent home to loved ones reveal even more.

Likewise, the anecdotes passed on by family members, or a comrade in arms, can be more telling about the life of a veteran than a box of medals and a chest ablaze with campaign ribbons.

For that reason, the Beckley Military Entrance Processing Station is seeking the story behind the veteran — perhaps letters sent home to loved ones from a war zone, or an anecdote from childhood. One name will be chosen after who to name the induction ceremony room at the Glen Jean center.

“It’s going to be hard to pick because there’s so many deserving veterans out there,” Maj. Allana Bryant, commander of the Beckley MEPS, said Monday.

“What’s going to make the difference is going to be those personal stories that we can get from relatives and things like that. Letters they sent home, or maybe they dressed up as a soldier when they were five years old.”

Put simply, the personal touch can carry as much weight, it not more, than a box full of medals or a chest adorned with campaign ribbons.

So far, about a dozen people have telephoned Bryant to inquire about making a nomination.

Four actual veterans have been nominated, including one by a man who fetched information from a Web site about Operation Red Wing in Afghanistan about a SEAL team member out of Virginia Beach.

“Then, he attached a bunch of information on Red Wing,” the major said.

Nominations may be filed with Bryant up to Oct. 30, after which she and a team at MEPS will pore over them to pick the honoree, whose life will be on display in the special ceremony room.

It is there that fresh recruits take that final step of being sworn in before being accepted into the military.

Another nominee is a Vietnam veteran and one man nominated saw combat in World War II.

Nominations may be filed by contacting Bryant directly at 304-465-0208, by mailing them to the Beckley MEPS, 409 Wood Mountain Road, Glen Jean, WV 25846, or faxing them to 304-465-3194.

A ceremony will be held in either January or February to formally name the room after the chosen veteran.

Although a veteran wounded or killed on foreign soil, or perhaps taken captive by enemy forces likely would draw the most attention, Bryant emphasized that no veteran would be excluded from consideration even if there is no remarkable distinction in his service. And, a veteran may nominate himself.

“What’s going to make the applicant identify with the room is the story behind him,” she said.

Nor is there any restriction on history when it comes to making a nomination. Any wartime service is acceptable.

“Our decision will be made at the end of the first week in November,” Bryant said.

“It won’t take us very long.”

— E-mail:

mannix@register-herald.com